Tim May excretes while appealing during Pakistan vs Australia tie in Wills Triangular Series 1994-95

Tim May excretes while appealing

Playing in a Wills Triangular Series encounter at Rawalpindi on October 22, 1994, Tim May soiled his trousers while appealing at the top of his lungs. Abhishek Mukherjee looks at an embarrassing moment for the man who went on to become one of the most distinguished faces of Australian cricket administration.

Shane Warne had cemented his position as the leading spinner of the Australia by Ashes 1993, pushing Tim May to the background. May had his moments, though the greatest among them — his famous 6.5-3-9-5 against a rampant West Indies at Adelaide Oval — came before Warne had stepped up to move past him.

Pakistan and Australia were all set to clash against each other at Rawalpindi. With South Africa without a win from 4 matches, Australia (having won all 3) had already qualified for the final. A victory against Australia in the sixth match would mean a qualification for Pakistan (2 wins from 3 matches) as well, since every side was entitled to 6 matches.

A sublime hundred

Michael Slater fell early after Saleem Malik put the tourists in. Mark Taylor and Justin Langer held up one end, allowing Mark Waugh to score; Steve Waugh hit a couple of boundaries, and Michael Bevan played one of those characteristic slog-less slog-over innings.

Ian Healy and Warne hit out lustily, but Mark Waugh was the sole reason for Australia making it to 250 for 6. Like always, his sedate silkiness was deceptive, allowing him to reach his hundred in no time. He eventually finished on a regal 121 not out from 134 balls. The seamers — Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, and Aaqib Javed — did a good job, but it was probably Akram Raza who stole the show, conceding a mere 36 off his 10.

Certainly not May Day

Despite the challenging total, Saeed Anwar and Aamer Sohail went after Craig McDermott and Glenn McGrath, getting off to 81 without loss in the first 10 overs (one must remember that this was well before Sanath Jayasuriya’s heydays). They forced Taylor to introduce both May and Warne early in the innings.

May rapped Anwar on the pads once and went up in a voracious appeal. It was, after all, the only way to end the merciless Pakistan onslaught. The decision was turned down. Ian Botham later wrote in Beefy’s Cricket Tales: “Just before the umpire said not out, though, there was a sharp change in Tim’s facial expression. The wicket-keeper Healy and Mark Waugh at slip thought he was simply disappointed with the umpire’s decision.”

Play went on, and May soon had Sohail, caught by Bevan. The Australians went into a huddle to celebrate, complete with smiles, high-fives, and more. It was then that the olfactory senses of May’s teammates made them realise that there was something not very likeable in the air.

There was obviously a general query, and May was quick to admit: “Sorry, boys, I appealed a bit too strongly a few overs ago and I sh*t myself. But it’s all okay because it has dried up now.”

Whether May’s “act” or his utter aloofness towards it disgusted his teammates is not very well-documented, but he was given a send-off by his teammates. It was only after a shower that he was allowed to resume bowling — only to be sledged by his own teammates. “Need a shower, champ?” was the response from the Australians every time May appealed.

Things got worse for Australia as Healy broke a finger and had to leave midway, handing over the gloves to Langer. He was ruled out for the rest of the tour. Amidst all the stench and thereafter, Anwar (104* in 119 balls) and Inzamam (91* in 80) helped Pakistan romp to a 9-wicket victory with 66 balls to spare.

What followed?

–  South Africa lost all their matches. Australia won the tournament, thanks to fifties from Taylor, Slater, and Bevan and a 5-for from McGrath.

–  Phil Emery was flown in following Healy’s injury. Though Langer kept wickets in the other league match, Emery replaced him in the final. Emery also played the third Test of the series at Lahore, thereby being Australia’s only Test wicketkeeper between Healy’s debut and Adam Gilchrist’s last Test (barring, of course, the two giants themselves).

–  Langer played only 8 ODIs, but 4 of them were as wicketkeeper. In fact, Langer averaged 89 (with a strike rate of 148.3) as a wicketkeeper and 17.25 (strike rate 59.16) otherwise.

–  May’s career did not last long. He never played after that season, and finished with 24 Tests (75 wickets at 34.74) and 47 ODIs (39 wickets at 45.43, economy rate 4.24). He later went on to become the first CEO of Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA), and was the driving force behind the World Cricket Tsunami Appeal match of 2004. He also became the President of Federation of International Cricketers’ Association (FICA) in 2005, though he resigned in 2013.

Brief scores:

Australia 250 for 6 in 50 overs (Mark Waugh 121*) lost to Pakistan 251 for 1 in 39 overs (Saeed Anwar*, Inzamam-ul-Haq 91*, Aamer Sohail 45) by 9 wickets.

(Abhishek Mukherjee is the Editor and Cricket Historian at CricketCountry. He blogs here and can be followed on Twitter here.)